Thursday, July 10, 2014

Bike, Hike, Pie...

You see, FW and The Bear have been cruising on the Appalachian Trail (AT) for the last 3 days and I have been left home alone...well, not entirely. The Goose has been keeping me company.

FW has been sorely missing the woods and she decided it was time to get some "wilderness experience" up on Roan Mountain on the Tennessee/NC border. The Roan is a badass hike over 14 miles of high altitude balds and rhododendron choked gaps. Its beautiful.

I did the same hike a few Aprils ago and have been really wanting to get back ASAP.

The hike is from Carvers Gap, NC to highway 19E and is only do-able as a shuttle run. This meant that she needed company and she found it in the form of her best friend and long term hiking partner Tiffany H. With Tiff on board they could use both cars to make the hike happen.

Her trip report, as told to me, was of an awesome time. Aside from The Bear rolling in human feces on the second day. This brings me to the most important factor when going out into God's Country...

Folks... If your going out into the forest and "nature calls", for the love of God and everyone else around you,

I cant tell you how many times I have come across human excrement and toilet paper right next to, or even sometimes on the trail. Its disgusting, environmentally harmful, and extremely bad outdoor etiquette. If you cant properly dispose of waste in the backcountry, stay home.
Soap box down...

Otherwise her hike seemed wonderful. Great weather, good people, and of course gorgeous mountain scenery.

Needless to say I am super jealous and now planning my own expedition to The Roan soon.

The best part is she returned with one of Western NC's most cherished and sacred objects...

This pie is the pie to end all pies. As a pie expert and connoisseur I can safely say there is none better. If your ever in the Linville Falls/Boone/Banner Elk area I strongly advise you seek it out... a la mode of course!

In bike-cycle news...

Tuesday afternoon I managed to get in an afternoon ride up on Trace Ridge in the North Mills Recreation Area. The ride was great, besides a little bit of spill on Spencer Gap. The climb up to the summit isn't terribly hard but its enough to give your lungs and legs a proper burn. On the way up I teamed up with a married couple out for a joy ride and we even saw a bear cub scurry across the trail in front of us.

The Trace Ridge downhill is a really fun ride. After a tricky climb up your rewarded with 2-3 miles of awesome Pisgah downhill. Plenty of drops, rocks, and berms to shred and the trail is wide open so the only thing slowing you down is your own nerve and sense of self preservation.

Bottom line... You can rip...and/or really hurt yourself if your not careful.

The cherry on top is lower Trace Ridge which is a short but super technical descent where the OTB factor is super high. FUN!

Ive started to really enjoy trying different routes and rides in our new home... Stay tuned for more and for the Beer and Tunes Weekend Kickoff in a few days...